The Granger Story
by LynxMalfoy
Summary: Written for the HPFC Competition, The Last Ship Standing. Hermione Granger, to say the least, was crushed. Has the snarky Potions Professor fallen for the Gryffindor Golden Girl? And what happens when Hermione receives some terrible news that changes her life? May be continue in due course.
1. Reciprocation

**Hi guys, I'm back! So this has been written for "The Last Ship Standing" contest on HPFC, using the prompts listed below:**

**ACTION:****a character must hug someone/something**

**EMOTION:**** crushed**

**QUOTE:**_**"life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans"**_**- John Lennon (_Beautiful Boy)_**

**DIALOGUE:****"Stop it, please!"**

**My ship (Which I chose), is SeverusXHermione. I hope you enjoy it, guys.**

**Reciprocation**

Hermione Granger, to say the least, was crushed.

It had started out as a few sly winks during classes, a brush of the hand, a coy smile, but now she didn't know what to think. In the space of a few short weeks, her world had completely flipped upside-down and back again, messing up all her plans.

Her mother had always told her that "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." On this occasion, Hermione definitely knew she was right. All she had planned on doing in her 7th Year was keeping her grades up and studying for her NEWTS at the end of the year. She certainly didn't plan on falling in like with her Professor (She wouldn't call it love yet) and she certainly didn't plan on flirting with him at every chance she got.

It had all come to a head this morning, during her double potions class. She had been about to add her extract of Hellbore into her Elixir of Forgetfulness when she was sure the Professor Snape had had the audacity to wink at her from up at the front of the classroom!

Well, she was so shocked that she dropped the small crystal vial in her suddenly slack hand into the potion, immediately turning the light blue liquid into a foul, bubbling, orange substance. She froze, arm still outstretched over the violently bubbling liquid.

In her lack of attention, she didn't notice the large bubble that burst in her cauldron, splattering the corrosive liquid on her sleeve. Only when the smell of burning cotton assaulted her nose did she look down. A small shriek left her lips as she tore of her cloak.

Unfortunately, Professor Snape noticed her dilemma.

"Miss Granger!" He snapped, "What is the meaning of this?" Hermione's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, no sound able to escape.

"I-" She began, but the Professor cut her off.

"50 points from Gryffindor for your lack of attention, Miss Granger. I would have thought you'd known better." He snipped, turning and making his way to the front of the classroom, vanishing her potion on the way.

Hermione fumed for the rest of the lesson, too incensed to do anything but glare at her professor. When the bell rang signalling the end of class, she packed her things slowly, taking her time while the rest of the class filtered out.

"Hurry up, Hermione." Ron said impatiently, tapping his foot on the ground.

"Honestly, Ronald." Hermione mumbled under her breath, before turning to him and Harry. "You guys go on ahead; I need to ask Professor Snape a question."

Harry nodded and left the classroom, dragging Ron out of the room as well. Hermione made her way up to the front of the room, where Professor Snape sat grading an essay.

"Professor Snape?" She asked, waiting patiently while he marked a large flourishing T onto a 2nd Year essay. He looked up and Hermione could swear his eyes spent a little too long on her body.

"How may I help you, Miss Granger?" He drawled, placing his quill down next to the graded essay.

"Why did you do that in class today?" She asked nervously. Snape's black eyes seemed to engulf all the light in the room and Hermione was afraid that if she looked into them for long enough, she would fall into them. She looked down, twiddling her bag strap with her left hand. She peeked up at him from underneath her eyelashes.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Miss Granger." He said simply, eyes sharpening and losing all emotion. Hermione snapped, sick of the growing tension in the room.

"Stop it, please!" She cried, letting the bag over her shoulder slump to the floor. "Stop pretending I don't know what you're doing, it's maddening!"

"Why Miss Granger," He smirked, and she shuddered at the feelings his smooth, velvety tones elicited in her. "I'm not doing anything."

"Yes you are!" She replied, almost screaming in anger. "The looks, the touching of the hand, everything! It's messing with my sanity!" The Professor merely smirked again.

"I suggest you get to your next lesson, Miss Granger. Break is almost over. I do not know what you think might be happening, but it certainly is not." With a huff of indignation, she grabbed her bag and hugged it tightly to her chest, rushing from the room. In her haste, she left her burnt coat sizzling on the back of her chair.

As she walked to her next class, Hermione thought over what had just happened. If anything, she should feel angry because Snape had used her own teenage emotions against her.

But no, instead she felt crushed. Crushed because she knew there was no hope that he would never reciprocate her feelings.

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**What did you guys think? I'm thinking that for each round of the contest I might write another chapter to add to the story. If I end up staying in the contest for long enough, it may end up a full story.**

**Till next time,**

**LynxMalfoy**

**Xx**


	2. The Not So Dead Heart of Severus Snape

**Hi Guys! So I got through to the next round and I thought it would be easiest to post all my entries in the one place (The same story) And the prompts are great to use to continue this story! So, my prompts are:**

**ACTION:**** a character must drink firewhiskey**

**EMOTION:**** elated**

**QUOTE:**_**"that's the thing about pain, it demands to be felt" -**_******John Green (****_The Fault in our _**

_**Stars)**_

**WORD:**** infinity**

**DIALOGUE:**** "my heart has scars you will never understand!"**

**I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed or favourite the last chapter, I was really surprised at the amount of feedback I got within a day, it was great. Any feedback is good feedback, in my opinion. Well, to the next chapter!**

**The Not So Dead Heart of Severus Snape**

Severus Snape sighed to himself and leaned back in his chair, a hand coming up to massage his forehead, where a migraine was starting to annoy him.

"Oh Hermione," he murmured to himself. "My heart has scars you will never understand." He stood from his desk, gathering his most recent batch of 2nd Year essays and retired to his chambers through a door in his office. He removed his cloak and placed it on the back of his couch, throwing the essays on his coffee table and going to the liquor cabinet he kept beside his fireplace. His private quarters, despite what most would think, were dressed in cream and dark grey, the colors blending well together.

Inside, though he would never tell it to anyone, Severus felt elated that she returned the feelings he had for her.

Grabbing a bottle of Ogden's best firewhiskey, he returned to his slate grey couch, setting the bottle down on the table, as well as a crystal glass. Pouring himself a large glass, he sat back and mulled over the past few weeks.

When he had first seen Hermione Granger at the opening feast of her seventh year, he could hardly believe she was the same girl. Her hair had changed from a bushy mess to a sleek mane of curls that flowed down her back to rest just above the swell of her ass, which made her look remarkably like her house mascot. Her body had changed from that of a girl to a young woman, enticing him like no other had in a long time. He had sat in a stunned silence for most of the meal, hardly hearing the words of the Charms professor who sat beside him.

When the feast had ended and she had caught him staring, he had jumped, hurriedly looking away so as not to be thought as staring. But the damage had been done. Her eyes had crinkled around the edges, and the brown seemed to go on and on to infinity.

Severus sighed yet again, and refilled his glass, sipping at the liquid and enjoying the burning sensation he felt as it went down his throat. They had skirted around each other for weeks, sharing heated looks and brief touches. But today, he knew he had gone too far. He would be surprised if he was forgiven after it.

He didn't mean for this to get so out of hand. He hadn't meant for her to actually like him in return. It pained him to know that he would never actually be able to tell her that he liked her in way that he shouldn't.

_But that's the thing about pain, _he told himself as he took another sip of his whiskey_. It demands to be felt. _He placed his glass back on the table and grabbed a sheet of clean paper and a large, black quill. He stumbled over the starting before he was finally able to say what he wanted to.

_Dear Hermio_

_Hermione –_

_Please forgive me for the way I have treated you lately. It was wrong of me to treat your feelings like they were inconsequential and meaningless when they really aren't to me. I shouldn't have played with them to begin with and I am sorry for leading you on. I fear that I have grown to –_

He stopped. What was he doing? He couldn't encourage her. He was twice her age and she was still his student. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't pursue a relationship with her.

He grabbed his glass and downed the rest of it in one gulp. He scrunched the letter up and threw it into his fireplace, watching as it crumpled into ashes in the heat.

Severus Snape, first almost the first time in his life, was at a loss for what to do. He felt slightly buzzed and as he flicked his gaze to the clock, He realized he was already five minutes late for his next class.

"Shit" He muttered, dropping his glass to the floor where it smashed into several pieces. He left it to clean up later, grabbing his coat and hurriedly buttoning it up.

He swept through his office to the classroom, where his third year class sat whispering quietly to one another.

"Silence!" He snapped as he walked to his desk. He flicked his wand at the board and it filled with the ingredients for the Draught of Elation.

"Read page 278 before completing the potion on the board" he said, sitting behind his desk and placing his wand on the table beside him. "You have until the end of the lesson."

The class quickly set to work gathering ingredients for the potion and setting up their cauldrons, talking quietly amongst themselves. Severus Snape was too engrossed in thought of Hermione to really care.

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**What did you guys think? I've actually hit the word limit this time, I didn't realize last time that I didn't meet it, because I counted my authors notes in. I'll most likely fix that. Thanks much to all those who have read this far.**

**LynxMalfoy**

**xx**


	3. Falling For You Literally

**Hey guys, I'm baaaaaaack! So here is the next chapter of "The Granger Story", and I'm not quite sure what I wanted this to turn out like. Probably not how it did.**

**ACTION: ****something must fall**

**WORD: ****glide**

**DIALOGUE: "I'm trying so hard, but the higher I climb the further I have to fall"**

**Anyways, this chapter is going to be in both POV and I hope you guys like it. This chapter is a lot more… dramatic.**

**Falling For You… Literally**

As Hermione glided down the corridor, she was so entrenched and absorbed in thoughts of her professor that she failed to watch where she was heading. Almost too late she realized that she was at the top of the 3rd story moving staircase and at the junction to her Muggle Studies class.

And too late she realized that she had put her foot through a trick step she otherwise would have jumped over.

With a strangled cry, Hermione pitched backwards, tipping over the banister and falling three flights to the ground floor, where she blacked out immediately.

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Severus Snape was sitting at his desk during his third year class, nursing an increasing pain in his skull and thinking over his and Hermione's conversation not half an hour before. He groaned as a load giggle drove its way through skull.

"15 points from Ravenclaw, Miss Carter, for incessant giggling." He growled and the giggling stopped, letting his poor skull have some peace for a few moments. That is, until a young looking fourth year burst through the door, red and out of breath.

"Mister Jackson." Severus said smoothly, ignoring the boy's wheezing and coughing, "What is the meaning of you bursting into my classroom during a lesson?"

"I'm sorry, Sir." The young boy replied, still panting like a dog, "but Madame Pomfrey needs you urgently. Someone's fallen off the moving staircase." Snape rolled his eyes. It had happened before, mainly to first and second years.

He walked quickly through to his study and grabbed a few potions from his personal store, before walking back to the classroom and dismissing his students. He turned back to the young fourth year, who was about to speak once more.

"One more thing, Sir…" the boy trailed off nervously at the look the cranky Potion's Master gave him.

"Well then, spit it out, I don't have all day." The Potion's Professor snapped, grabbing a battered leather case that had many empty spots for potions vials. The boy twisted his hands nervously before taking a big breath and "spitting it out".

"The student who fell… It was Hermione Granger."

The Professors face grew deathly pale before he shot from the room like a bullet from a gun, leaving a confused student in his wake.

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Poppy Pomfrey was extremely confused when the Potion's Master arrived at the bottom of the moving staircase. For one, he looked extremely rumpled, his hair in complete disarray because of his quick flight. And two, he seemed way too concerned over the fact that it was his third hated student on the floor in front of her.

"How is she?" he asked as soon as he was close enough to see his student. It was not a very pretty sight. Hermione lay in an awkward position, her left arm twisted the wrong way around and tucked under her body while her left leg was broken at the thigh, a large shard of bone protruding from the skin and a blood puddle beginning to form around the unconscious girl. Her face and neck where already beginning to bruise from the vicious force at which she hit the ground.

"Not good." Madame Pomfrey replied, waving her wand over the girl in a complicated manner, and uttering a lengthy charm. A list of words and numbers appeared in front of her, in an illogical jumble that the Professor couldn't understand.

The healer's eye's widened in shock as she read the list and a small gasp left her lips. She stood quickly and levitated the girl from the ground.

"What's wrong?" Snape asked, his voice taking on a squeaky pitch the nurse had never heard before, and she looked at him oddly.

"I'm not quite sure." She replied, though Severus could tell she knew something and that it wasn't good.

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Hermione floated in a dark space, unaware of anything around her except for the darkness, which smothered all her senses. From the blackness, she could hear voices talking, softly at first but growing in volume.

"Oh Hermione," She heard softly, and at first she couldn't quite place the voice. But as it continued speaking, she couldn't help but realize who the voice belonged to.

"I'm trying so hard, not to fall in love with you. But the higher I climb, the further I have to fall. And the fall is the worst bit." She smiled internally at this information as the black cloud lift and she opened her eyes slightly, to see Professor Snape sitting by her bed side, his fingers lightly caressing her hand.

She gave it a gentle squeeze and he looked up, shock in his eyes.

"Then let me catch you." Hermione replied, letting the internal smile out. He smiled softly in return.

"I should have been there to catch you." He said, his voice filled with guilt.

"You weren't to know I would fall in the first place." Hermione replied as she remembered why exactly she was in the Hospital Wing to begin with. The fall flashed in front of her eyes and she flinched at the memory, only to have the real pain flash through her.

"What did I break?" She asked him and he stood up, walking to the end of the bed and reading her chart. She sensed immediately that he was back in teacher mode and it was a good thing too, as Madame Pomfrey had joined them. She took the chart from him and read it aloud.

"Broken radius, broken ulna, three cracked ribs, a cracked vertebrae and a broken femur. You certainly did a number on yourself, Miss Granger." She said. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I fell three stories and landed on stone." Hermione replied the elderly matron chuckled, before stopping abruptly and growing serious.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news, Miss Granger." She said and Hermione looked at her, suddenly nervous about what Madame Pomfrey had to say.

"While I was performing some standard diagnostic charms, I came across something that I wasn't quite sure of. When I brought you back here, I did a more thorough examination and came to a conclusion on what the results meant."

I had no clue where she was going with this explanation so I continued to sit quietly as she took a deep breath and told me the news that shocked me to my core.

"Miss Granger, you have cancer."

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**Okay so this story just happened to go this way and I actually have a pretty good idea on where this will go from here on out, though. I'm quite happy with this chapter and I hope you guys like it as much as I do.**

**LynxMalfoy**

**xx**


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